The Opposition Has Rights

The Ugandan democratic opposition leader has fled the country. The opposition leader Bobi Wine was in hiding for about two months since the elections that voted to keep a long time Ugandan President Yoweri Musoveni in-office. The opposition leader has challenged the outcome of the elections, and alleged voter fraud. It’s a serious allegation that must be inquired upon. The voter fraud in a democracy is uncalled for, and Bobi Wine along with opposition members should have their rights protected. They need not flee the country unless they are intimidated or threatened. The democratic means must be used, and judicial inquiry must be put in place to find the reasons for the political misdemeanours. Most democracies are maintained by the hard efforts of the opposition, and Uganda being another democracy must learn to respect its opposition members, irrespective of the backgrounds that they come from. The opposition has its human rights which must be duly protected by the Ugandan government and judiciary must intervene to provide and guarantee human rights to the fleeing opposition leader. The allegations of vote fraud cannot be taken lightly, and should be considered with forthright seriousness of political acumen. The opposition must use democratic means to ask the unicameral National Assembly in Uganda to inquire on the just allegations put forth by the opposition.

The democratic norms must be maintained in Uganda and its cabinet along with the head of the government must be more circumspect, and hold opposition responsible, and not threaten or browbeat it so coldly thus they flee a country out of fear and political trepidations. The oppositional rights must be protected by the National Assembly and the leaders as Wine should be given the due that they rightfully deserve. An opposition leader fleeing a country two months after the presidential elections is tell-tale sign of weaknesses in the politics that Uganda exerts. The Uganda has had a careless past since its independence from the British in 1962. The two bloody regimes have been alleged to have killed over 400,000 in the internecine wars in the meantime. The Musoveni regime must bring political sanity back to the Assembly and ask its members to behave democratically. Running away to foreign shores without any political reason is a cause for grave concern. The government must look into the allegations of voter fraud and not allow intimidations to flourish in Uganda. Uganda being a democracy must have free and fair elections. The recent turmoil must be sorted politically and all the negligence that the current affair has signified must be culled. The opposition rights should be maintained appropriately and democratic norms given the due that they deserve. A democracy must be run with utmost regard for the rule of law, and this salient principle cannot be compromised upon. The laws protect opposition rights as it does the rights of the ruling class in Uganda. Uganda must call for an immediate inquiry and assure its opposition leader, Bobi Wine, of his safety and democratic rights. The human rights cannot be abrogated, not so easily.  

Yuvraj Saharan

Capital Report